Revit has no native headless mode. bim-cli adds one: a lightweight add-in that loads alongside Revit and exposes it as a command-line API — so a terminal command or an AI assistant can drive your model without you touching the GUI.
Claude Code opens a Revit demo project, rotates furniture sets, and exports the floor plan to PDF — no user interaction required.
No. Revit always runs as a full GUI application — there is no --headless flag or server mode built in. Running Revit "headless" in practice means one of three things:
A bridge add-in (bim-cli) — loads alongside the running Revit GUI and exposes a TCP command interface that your terminal or agent calls into. Revit must be installed and licensed on the same machine; the GUI window exists but you never touch it.
A cloud processing service (Autodesk APS) — Autodesk runs Revit on their infrastructure and exposes REST APIs. Requires an APS account, API keys, and pay-per-use billing.
A batch scripting tool (RevitBatchProcessor) — open-source Python framework for running Revit tasks via scheduled journal files. Requires Revit open, Python setup, and has not been actively maintained since 2023.
bim-cli is option 1: free, offline, no account, works today with Revit 2024–2026.
Install bim-cli once. The bim-revit add-in loads automatically the next time you open Revit. Then any of these work from PowerShell, a script, or an AI assistant:
bim revit export --all-sheets --paper-size Letter --combine
bim revit exec --code "doc.GetElements<FamilyInstance>().Where(e => e.Category.Name == \"Doors\")" --lang cs
bim excel read params.xlsx | bim revit param set --by Mark
bim revit exec --code "doc.GetWarnings().Select(w => new { desc = w.GetDescriptionText(), elements = w.GetFailingElements().Count() })" --lang cs | bim excel write warnings.xlsx
No dialog boxes. No copy-paste. The output is always JSON, so it pipes directly to Excel, Google Sheets, or any downstream tool.
Once bim-cli is installed, describe what you need to Claude Code, Cursor, Copilot, or any AI tool that can run shell commands. The assistant handles the commands.
Export a schedule to a spreadsheet
"Pull the door schedule from this model and write it to a spreadsheet." The assistant exports the data as structured rows and pipes it to Excel.
Bulk-edit parameters
"Set the Assembly Code on all structural walls to match this Excel file." The assistant reads the file, finds the elements, and writes the values back — across hundreds of elements at once.
Export sheets to PDF
"Export all architectural sheets to PDF, named by sheet number." Done — without you opening the Export dialog.
Run arbitrary Revit API code
bim revit exec takes any C# snippet and runs it in the context of the active document. If you know the Revit API, every verb is available. If you don't, describe what you want to your AI assistant and it writes the snippet for you.
| bim-cli | Autodesk APS | RevitBatchProcessor | Revit 2027 MCP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free | Pay-per-use | Free | Requires Revit 2027 |
| Runs where | Local | Autodesk cloud | Local | Local |
| Account required | No | Yes (APS account) | No | Autodesk account |
| Revit versions | 2024, 2025, 2026 | Cloud (APS-managed) | 2017–2024 | 2027 only |
| Works without Revit open | No | Yes | No | No |
| AI assistant integration | Shell-native | REST API | Script | MCP protocol |
| Status | Active | Active | Unmaintained | Tech preview |
Revit 2027 ships with a built-in MCP server (Tech Preview). bim works with Revit 2024, 2025, and 2026 today — no upgrade, no MCP config, no server process to manage. Your AI coding tool calls bim from its terminal the same way it calls git or curl.
Install bim-cli. Open Revit with your model. Then describe what you need to your AI assistant or run bim commands directly in a terminal.
iwr -useb https://bimcli.com/install.ps1 | iex
No admin rights required. No account. Nothing leaves your machine. Your assistant discovers bim-cli's full capability automatically after install via bim describe --json.
The bim-revit add-in binds to a local TCP port when Revit starts. The bim-cli dispatcher sends JSON-RPC calls to that port. Revit stays open as a normal GUI window; your terminal or AI assistant is the only thing sending it instructions.
Every command runs locally on your machine — no cloud call, no API key, no data leaves your network. Revit must be installed and licensed. The add-in loads automatically; no manual install step.